There is a known setting-diagnosis system. In the system, a transmitter-receiver having a function of near-field communication (NFC) is provided in the outdoor unit of a refrigeration cycle apparatus such as an air conditioning apparatus. Contactless data communication is performed between the transmitter-receiver and an information terminal to set various types of data necessary to operate the outdoor unit and diagnose the state of the outdoor unit. The transmitter-receiver operates with the electricity generated by electromagnetic induction due to radio waves transmitted from the information terminal.
The housing of the outdoor unit is formed of a metal plate, which is a magnetic material. To prevent the plate from disturbing data communication, an opening is formed in the housing of the outdoor unit, and the transmitter-receiver is provided in the opening. An openable and closable cover is attached to the opening to shield the transmitter-receiver from wind and rain. (JP 5197549 B)
When a worker performs the above data setting or diagnosis near the outdoor unit, the worker needs to open and close the cover of the opening. This opening and closing operation is troublesome for the worker, and leads to work delay. In particular, if data setting or diagnosis is repeated for a large number of outdoor units, the workload is increased. This increase leads to a further work delay. If the cover of the opening is open when it rains or snows, rain or snow infiltrates into the inside of the outdoor unit. Thus, the worker may not be able to even perform data setting or diagnosis.
Embodiments described herein aim to provide an outdoor unit which allows easy and steady data communication with an information terminal without any operation for opening or closing a cover.